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Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most
people won’t so you can spend the rest of your life like most
people can't. -- Anonymous

Do you have the bug? You know, that pervasive itch that you just
can't ignore? No, I'm not talking about some disease. Rather, I'm
talking about the urge to create something for yourself, to carve
out your own space in the world, to create something from
nothing. I'm talking about starting a business.

Many who have the itch set out to build a business from the
ground up, only to discover that they aren’t ready for the
entrepreneurial life. Most people have no idea just how brutal it
really is. It requires a lot of hard work, and a lot of sleepless
nights. Many have been pushed to the brink of suicide, unable to
cope with the stress involved with being an entrepreneur.

Before you dive into creating a business plan, you need to assess
an important question: Are you ready for the entrepreneurial
life? Here's a checklist to help you answer that question.

1. It's all you think about. From the
moment you wake up in the morning to the moment you rest your
racing head on the pillow each night, you're consumed by your
potential business. Constantly brainstorming product ideas,
features and marketing strategies (prior to even having a
company) doesn't qualify you as an entrepreneur, but it does give
you a leg up on those who lack that quality. Passion is what will
get you through the tough times and those moments when everyone
else is telling you you're crazy.

Successful entrepreneurs are defined by the ability to wait for
gratification.

2. You're beyond determined. Motivation is
everything when you want to be an entrepreneur. But to really
embrace the entrepreneurial lifestyle, you have to be chronically
determined.

When something goes horribly wrong, how do you react? The
real-deal entrepreneur will just shrug it off, fix the
issue and resolve to do things differently next time. This
doesn’t mean entrepreneurs aren’t allowed to get stressed, but it
does mean they know how to solve problems and manage stress
effectively. Too many people with genuinely good ideas get
discouraged the moment they hit their first roadblock.

Being an entrepreneur means driving through a road littered with
obstacles and being able to knock every single one down.

3. You take criticism as motivation. People
in and out your industry, fellow business owners and those
just watching from the sidelines are all going to tell you that
your ideas stink. They’re going to criticize and pick apart every
aspect of your business. Why? Because that's what people do.

For various reasons, most people like to find the flaws in the
things others create. A quick gander at the comments on pretty
much any YouTube video will tell you that much.

People who have the right mindset to launch a business aren't
deterred by other people's negative comments. Rather, they're
spurned on by them. A true entrepreneur responds to doubt with,
"You think I can't do this? Watch me prove you wrong!"
And trust me on this: that's as good a motivation as any.

4. You aren't broke. You don't need to be
swimming in a sea of cash, but having some money in the bank can
help big time. The more cash you have on hand, the less you'll
need to borrow. And the less debt you can start out with, the
better.

If you do need to borrow the funds to get your business
going, be as conservative in your estimates as you can while
still being realistic. Borrowing too little could mean you don't
have enough funds to accommodate your expenses (or your payroll)
before you start to turn a profit.

5. You have healthy coping mechanisms for
stress. Those with the entrepreneurial mindset have
a predisposition toward heightened levels of stress and anxiety.
In fact, according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, 34
percent of entrepreneurs indicated they were worried, while 45
percent said they were stressed. This reflects a 4 percent and 3
percent higher rate than workers who are not entrepreneurs.

This has to do with the fact that entrepreneurs are prone to
having more intense emotional states. The intense motivation
associated with successful entrepreneurs comes with an increased
likelihood of intense depression and anxiety. As such, healthy
coping mechanisms for stress are vital to living the
entrepreneurial life. For help with reducing stress, see my
article here, which is based on my own
experiences.

Not everyone is made for the entrepreneurial life. But hopefully
you now have a sense of whether you'd make the cut.